Emirates A380 departs from new Concourse A

Emirates has achieved another world first with one of its A380 flights departing from the world’s only purpose-built A380 concourse. Concourse A, in Dubai International Airport, is part of the airport’s Terminal 3 complex and is to become “home of the Emirates A380”.

The 11-floor concourse is equipped to handle the increased passenger volume thanks to the high capacity of the 4-aisle, double-decker A380s, with each plane able to carry around 500 people. Passengers will be able to connect to over 20 Emirates A380 destinations around the world, with flights to Europe being taken on Emirates’ new partner aircraft, Qantas.

Concourse A opened its gates to allow Emirates flight EK003 to London Heathrow to depart, making commercial aviation history as the first flight to leave from a purpose-built concourse. Four more flights have departed from Concourse A as part of an ongoing trial to test the seamlessness of the journey and the concourse is set to open in stages throughout the first quarter of this year.

His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, president of the Dubai Department of Civil Aviation, chairman and chief executive of Emirates Airline, and chairman of Dubai Airports, stated that the flight was a “historic and momentous occasion, marking another world first from Emirates. The new A380 hub is another example of Emirates being a leader in providing innovative products and services that give customers an unsurpassed travel experience... We are confident that our customers will find the new concourse to be a remarkable world class facility befitting of our flagship Emirates A380 aircraft."